Homeowner Insurance Policy in Georgia
Georgia doesn’t require homeowners insurance by law, but if you finance your home, your lender will require you to have a homeowners insurance policy in place. Your policy’s coverages are designed to safeguard your property and assets.
A Typical Homeowner Insurance Policy
– Dwelling coverage protects your home’s structure (walls,roof, etc.) as well as attached structures, like a porch.
– Other structures’ coverage protects detached structures, such as a fence, shed or small shop.
– Personal property coverage protects your personal belongings, including furniture, clothing, and electronics. Certain items, like jewelry, art, and collectibles, are often only covered up to a specific limit, so you may want to purchase an endorsement to schedule these items on your policy at the coverage amount needed, also known as “adding a rider.”
– Personal liability coverage protects you financially if you’re legally responsible for another person’s injuries or damage to their property.
– Medical payments to others coverage pays for medical expenses due to a covered occurrence.
– Loss of use coverage helps cover costs associated with an increase in living expenses, up to your policy’s limit, if you’re unable to stay in your home while it’s being repaired or rebuilt due to a covered loss.
Additional Coverage Options You Can Add To Your Homeowners Policy
- Identity theft protection. Covers the cost of legal fees, lost wages and other related costs if your identity is stolen.
- Water backup. Covers water damage caused by your drain backing up or sump pump breaking.
- Scheduled personal property. Covers valuable appraised items like engagement rings, paintings or antiques.
- Business property. Increases limits for business-related items stored in your home, like inventory.
- Sports equipment. Increases coverage for expensive gear like golf clubs, snowboards and more.
- Green improvement reimbursement. Covers the additional cost of replacing damaged or destroyed items with more energy-efficient items.
- Yard and garden. Increases the limits for the cost of items like trees, landscaping and lawn equipment.
- Electronic data recovery. Covers the cost of recovering photos or videos from lost personal computer data.
- Musical instruments. Increases coverage for items like guitars, violins and more.
How to find the best cheap home insurance in Georgia
Finding the best cheap home insurance in Georgia is vital to financially protect your home, which could be your most significant investment during your lifetime. Whether it’s your first homeowners insurance policy in Georgia or your tenth, finding the coverage that fits your needs as well as your budget can be challenging. However, following the steps below might keep you on track:
- Evaluate your needs: Knowing how much coverage you need will not only ensure that your finances are properly protected, but it can help prevent you from overinsuring or purchasing higher coverage limits than you need. Consulting with a licensed insurance agent could help you tailor a package that makes the most sense for you and your home.
- Compare quotes: Every company has its own unique underwriting guidelines and places different weights on various rating factors. Comparing quotes from multiple companies in Georgia will help you narrow down the ones that are the most competitive (and the ones that offer the coverage you need). When shopping around, you want to be sure that you’re requesting the same (or similar) coverage limits and options from carrier to carrier. Otherwise, you may accidentally choose a cheap policy with inadequate coverage.
- Take advantage of discounts: When requesting homeowners insurance quotes in Georgia, it could be a good idea to make sure that you’re taking advantage of every discount you may be eligible for. This is especially important when completing online quotes, as some applications may make you manually select certain discounts to apply them.
- Maintain your property/roof: Although Georgia is a little more inland than other states in the Southeast, it’s still susceptible to wind and hurricane damage. Because newer roofs are less likely to be damaged in a severe storm, home insurance companies may offer lower rates to those with new roofs. Some companies even provide roof-specific discounts.
- Raise your deductible: Although this may not be ideal, raising your deductible can help lower your homeowners insurance premium. If you go this route, many insurance professionals would advise you to select an amount you would feel comfortable paying out of pocket in an emergency.
Although homeowners insurance premiums in Georgia tend to be lower than average, taking advantage of discounts could help you save even more. Discounts will vary from company to company but when you’re requesting quotes, you may want to keep an eye out for some of the more common homeowners insurance discounts.
Georgia’s Common Causes of Loss
Hurricane damage is one of the most prevalent risks in the Peach State. Although it’s been some time since Georgia has been a direct target for a hurricane, it’s not out of the question. In addition to standard homeowners insurance coverage types like dwelling coverage, liability, personal property and loss of use, you may want to consider additional coverage to protect yourself against Georgia’s common causes of loss:
- Flood insurance: Many areas of Georgia are at a high risk for flood damage, with the average National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claim payout at over $26,000. Because flooding is not covered by home insurance, you may want to consider purchasing a flood policy in conjunction with your homeowners policy. Additionally, you will likely be required to purchase a separate flood insurance policy from either the National Flood Insurance Program or a private flood insurer if your home is in a high-risk flood zone. Some home insurers offer endorsements for flood coverage.
- Windstorm coverage: Georgia’s coastal position comes with the risk of hurricane damage, which can be widespread and devastating. Most policies cover wind damage automatically, but if you are in a high-risk area, you may need a separate policy or endorsement. Even if your homeowners insurance policy does cover wind damage, you may have a separate wind deductible for named tropical cyclones.
- Roof replacement cost: Although Georgia is not in Tornado Alley, it is prone to significant tornadic activity. And while most tornado damage comes from high winds, hail is also common with these convective storms. If your roof is newer or in good condition, you may qualify for roof replacement cost coverage. If your roof is damaged, you could get the full replacement cost for repairs or a new roof rather than seeing depreciation taken out of your settlement.
Georgia has a relatively high risk for storm-related damage, so working with a licensed insurance agent to choose which endorsements are right for you could be really beneficial. Goog Thing Realty, leading you home and advising you how to keep it protected!